Journey through cancer treatment leads Clark County woman to essential oils

Had you told Clark County artist Kelly Keigwin a few years ago that she would someday be teaching classes on the health benefits of essential oils, she probably would have looked at you with a bemused grin and laughed.

Back then, circa 2012, Keigwin was newly married to her wife, Sam MacKenzie, a devout vegetarian, and just starting her own journey toward better health. She had made progress by 2014, changing her dietary habits to push out processed foods in favor of things like homegrown veggies and freshly laid chicken eggs.

Then, in April of 2014, a visit to the doctor rocked Keigwin’s world. At the age of 46, Keigwin was told that she had an aggressive form of endometrial cancer that had spread from her uterus to her lymph nodes.

In her blog, Fear is a 4 Letter Word (http://fearisa4letterword.org), Keigwin writes that an endometrial cancer diagnosis at the age of 46 is rare. Typically, this form of cancer strikes much older women. To treat such an aggressive cancer, Keigwin’s doctors told her she would need surgery and chemotherapy as soon as possible. Within just a few weeks of her diagnosis, Keigwin found herself in a post-surgery, pre-chemo state, trying to keep her spirits up and her health as strong as possible so the chemotherapy could kill the cancerous cells without wrecking the rest of her body.

“Chemo just strips you of everything,” Keigwin says. “But we had researched and knew I needed the chemotherapy … so I was doing everything I could to stay healthy. I took bee pollen, and used concentrated greens and was juicing. Then, a friend gifted me with a bottle of frankincense essential oil, so I started taking a few drops of that every day.”

Keigwin had prepared herself for the worst during her chemo sessions. And, while she still had a few adverse effects, she says her symptoms were more manageable than she expected.

“My doctor was surprised by how well I was doing,” Keigwin says. “I didn’t have the typical symptoms like nausea or myopathy (muscle weakness). I was also doing acupuncture and still drinking the greens and vegetable juice, and taking the frankincense. So, I can’t really pinpoint what it was, if it was any one thing, but somehow this combination worked for me.”

After the chemotherapy sessions, Keigwin says she became more and more interested in the healthful benefits of essential oils. She looked up the properties of frankincense oil and saw that it promotes feelings of peace and overall wellness and is also known for treating skin blemishes.

“People would compliment me on my skin and tell me I looked healthy – while I was going through chemo!” Keigwin says, laughing. “Maybe that was the frankincense. I know that it definitely helped me feel peaceful during my treatments. Even now, when I smell it, I feel comforted.”

A few months after her chemo treatments had ended, Keigwin found herself in a slump.

“I was just feeling so ‘blah,’” she says. “There was a point last January, when all I wanted to do was just lay in bed all day.”

That’s when a friend introduced Keigwin to a brand of essential oils called dōTERRA. A Utah-based company that makes therapeutic-grade essential oils and wellness products, dōTERRA appealed to Keigwin. The company was known for its sustainable practices and for investing in the environment and communities where they sourced their oils. For Keigwin, a lifelong advocate for human and animal rights, the company’s respect for people, animals and the environment called to her. She ordered a line of supplements known as dōTERRA’s Lifelong Vitality Pack, a blend of essential oils, essential fatty acids and antioxidants, and started taking the supplements daily.

“Within three weeks, I felt motivated,” Keigwin says. “I could get out of bed. I wanted to go outside and see people again.”

As she delved into the health benefits of essential oils, Keigwin discovered that healers use the oils to help people with a wide range of ailments – everything from getting rid of a headache to  promoting emotional stability.

Of the essential oils’ health benefits, Keigwin says she looks at them not as a cure-all, but as a support system for everything from sleep problems to allergies to emotional stability.

“So much of what we think of as ‘medicine’ is really about masking symptoms,” Keigwin says, referring to many of the pharmaceuticals and over-the-counter medications people take for their health concerns. “Essential oils aren’t about solving a problem or masking a symptom … they give your body the support it needs to heal.”

Nowadays, Keigwin is spreading the word about essential oils and hosting dōTERRA classes throughout Clark County. She recently attended a dōTERRA conference event in Utah and learned more about the company’s sustainable practices and the methods they use to make their therapeutic-grade oils.

In her classes, Keigwin talks about the various essential oils and oil blends – the frankincense that supports a positive mood and the “Slim & Sassy” blend that supports weight loss, for instance – and sets up a display of oils to give people their own sensory experience. Last summer, Keigwin did a few classes based on making healthful drinks from the citrus oils, which are known for their cleansing and detoxifying properties.

“It’s fun,” Keigwin says. “I love meeting people and educating people. I do show them how to buy the dōTERRA oils, if they want to do that, but it’s not a sales pitch, it’s an educational class.”

Keigwin has a full schedule of November classes coming up, including several at Old Town Battle Grounds coffee shop, at 316 E. Main St., in Old Town Battle Ground. The Battle Ground classes will be held from 1 to 3 p.m. on three different Saturdays, Nov. 7, 14 and 28. To see a current schedule of Keigwin’s upcoming classes, visit her website at www.fearisa4letterword.org. Keigwin will also do private consultations and classes at no cost. To schedule a consultation or sign up for a class, email Keigwin at kkeigwin@gmail.com.